Friday, November 22, 2013

When Calls the Heart DVD directed by Michael Landon Jr. Review






When Calls the Heart is a Hallmark Channel movie based on the book by Janette Oke. In 1910, young Elizabeth Thatcher dreams of starting her career as a teacher.  She meets with Mr. Higgins who she assumes will assign her to her first post but is confused by his personal advances and rebuffs him.  In return he assigns her to a remote coal mining town far away from her family and cultured life.  Elizabeth is discouraged but determined and after she discovers the diary from her aunt Elizabeth who was also a teacher in a remote town, she takes steps to prepare herself for this new adventure.  This movie shares the story of both women as aunt Elizabeth encounters wolves, an attentive man who she assumes is one of  the parents and the way the community comes together to raise money for a sick student.  And young Elizabeth sets off to her new job to be independent only to find that she also is in need of protection and love. 

This is a sweet movie with two romances!  I read this book when I was in high school and loved it.  Although the story is little different than the original book, it covers much of the same scenes that I remember which charmed my heart.  You will enjoy how both Elizabeths show their courage and strength in the midst of challenging circumstances, but also being ladies and giving love and goodness to those around them.

*I was given a complimentary copy of this movie from Edify Media.  All opinions are my own.* 
 
WHEN CALLS THE HEART
RELEASING TO VIDEO NOVEMBER 19th
 
The Movie that began one of the first Television Series inspired by a Christian Author
 
Nashville , Tennessee- When Calls the Heart, directed by Michael Landon Jr. and based on the best-selling books by Janette Oke, tells the story of a young high society teacher receiving her first classroom post in a prairie town in the Western Frontier.  Determined to prove to her family that she is brave enough to live on her own,  Elizabeth (Poppy Drayton) struggles with her own fears and doubts until she discovers her late Aunt's diary.  Her aunt (Maggie Grace), also named Elizabeth, had set off on a similar adventure as a teacher into the frontier, where she struggled with prairie life and eventually met and fell in love with a Royal Canadian Mountie (Stephen Amell).  Reading her aunt’s words, the young Elizabeth decides to put her future in God’s hands and embark on her own adventure where she uses the diary as her guide as well as Edward, another Mountie (Daniel Sharman), sworn to see her arrive.
 
When Calls the Heart debuted on the Hallmark Channel to more than 3.2 million viewers, making it the No. 1 movie of the week on ad-supported cable.  Distributed by Word Entertainment, The DVD will be available to purchase in Christian Retail November 19th, 2013.
 
Synopsis
When Calls the Heart is the story of Elizabeth Thatcher, a cultured young school teacher in 1910 who, through the discovery of her aunt's secret diary, finds the courage to leave her big city home to accept a teaching position in a frontier coal mining town.  And in the process, she also finds the potential for love with a handsome Royal Canadian Mountie.
 
Michael Landon Jr. – Director:  Michael Landon Jr., son of the late television legend Michael Landon, has been in the film business for over 25 years.  With two of the highest rated films in the history of the Hallmark channel, and several top ten releases targeted to the Christian market, Michael has become known for creating heartfelt, inspiring films that connect to the family.  He has developed and/or produced, directed, and written screenplays for Fox, CBS, NBC, Disney, Sony, Lifetime, and others.